Dig a Grave for Two
by lilseekergirl
Summary: Megatron wants to resurrect part of his past to destroy the future of the Autobots. But will his desire for destruction be the end for both factions? This is EXTREMELY alternate universe with a crazy blend of characters from G1, TFAnimated, and TFPrime all set in Prime timeline. Brave souls are wanted to read and review!
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Megatron wants to resurrect part of his past to destroy the future of the Autobots. But will his desires be the end for both factions?

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these Transformer characters, Hasbro does.

I know my in-story character pairings are not originals, so kudos to whomever smashed them together first.

Some characters may seem OOC to you, but I'm bridging together different characters from all different TF shows to fit neatly in my twisted little story, so just deal with it. Just imagine everybody got a TFPrime upgrade/makeover, and I have given some G1 characters new backstories that reflect a TFPrime theme.

I'm a bit rusty at writing fanfics. Reviews are helpful- especially when you're honest so please level with me on this and offer constructive criticism. Don't flame me just because you hate my pairings. I will list official pairings at the end of this chapter- if I said it all now I would ruin the fun!

Warning: This is rated T for violence, mild cursing, slash, angsty teenagers, lots of death, a dark romance, a love triangle, ninja robots, zombies, and whatever else I can write for you. So, for those who get upset by some of that stuff, ye be warned! I will up the rating if I decide to be as unforgiving as I originally intended to be… Hence why I ask for reviews!

The amber sun was slowly sinking across a forgotten part of Nevada. At the bottom of a jagged mountain ridge, the dusty earth was blowing gently across a lonely two-lane road that seemed to stretch for miles. Cactus plants and tumbleweeds casted their last shadows across the desert landscape like tiny headstones in a graveyard.

All seemed quiet on the western frontier, but it was soon shattered by the unmistakable sound of a jet flying low against the rose-colored sky. The solitary seeker was not amused by his mission. He was also less than thrilled that his assigned partner was on the ground. He really wanted to fly back to the Nemesis without saying a word to his present company. But Starscream knew he would only get chewed out by their leader for yet another failure.

_This is such a meaningless task, _he thought to himself, _and being forced to work with this fraggin brick on wheels has made this whole assignment completely unbearable!_

They had been out all day in the scorching heat scanning through layers of rock that all looked the same to him on the outside. To make things worse, the lucky participants got to wear large, box-like devices that would map out whatever lay inside the solid mountain rock. Soundwave had stolen it all from a nearby human research facility the day before. Soundwave did a great job at reformatting the tech to fit Cybertronian bodies in vehicle modes, but the scanners were still slightly awkward for flight based beings to use. And Starscream knew that they had to stay in vehicle mode when using the scanners or else they wouldn't work.

_I am Second in Command; _Starscream hissed to himself, _I cannot waste my time looking for some worthless, forgotten femme locked up in a rock coffin! If only Megatron would think with his processor and not his-_

"Commander Starscream," Breakdown cut in, "this is the last bit of mountains to check before we have to return to base but my scanner just ran out of power, can I head back to the ship?"

Starscream let out a sigh and coldly replied, "No. You will remain here as my lookout until I have completed the mission."

"Yes sir." Breakdown said dejectedly. He really wanted to go back to the Nemesis. His favorite TV show was about to come on, and he wanted nothing more than to enjoy it with Knockout.

"Don't worry Breakdown," Starscream said in his usual haughty tone," In just a few moments, you'll be back in time to watch your precious humans dance. Ugh. The thought of those fleshbags shaking their bodies like that is disturbing. No self-respecting Decepticon should watch such garbage. Honestly, I just don't understand you four wheelers and your tolerance for those inferior creatures..."

Breakdown replied nothing over the com link; he was used to Starscream being a hateful son-of-a-glitch. It was better to just take the insult and bury the anger deep down so he didn't have to deal with him at the moment. Instead of dwelling on Starscream, Breakdown quickly tried his best to think about the mysterious thing he was searching for all day. Only Starscream and Soundwave knew what the item really was, Megatron didn't give any other details about it. He simply stated he wanted all findings directly reported to him as soon as they arrived back.

_Maybe it's another Cybertronian relic that will help us finally win this war!_ he thought happily to himself. _Well, whatever Lord Megatron is looking for, it'd better be worth missing part of 'Dancing with the Stars' tonight!  
_

Starscream had taken longer than a few moments.

In fact, he took about twenty Earth minutes. He was going to pull up and blast out of the mountains when his scanner began to beep wildly. He found what it was zooming in on. He swooped down so fast, anyone else would have crashed headfirst into the ground or clipped their wings on the narrow pass. But not this seeker. He wove through it all with ease and gracefully glided to a small plateau that was hidden among the pointy mountaintops. He hovered above it and pondered how far down Megatron's precious treasure actually was. The scanner indicated there was one large form almost directly underneath him, and hundreds of smaller forms were scattered further down all around the plateau.

"Ah well, I must have found something of importance," he mused," there is definitely someone familiar buried here in all this mess... Megatron will be pleased."

He quickly called Breakdown on the com-link. "Breakdown!" he snarled," call Soundwave to bridge us out of here. I believe I discovered what we came for. I am saving the coordinates and gathering the last bits of data to be analyzed later."

"Yes Commander!" Breakdown answered quickly. He had to stifle any joy in his voice about going back to the Nemesis or Starscream would likely rip into his human interests again.

Suddenly, the familiar whoosh and green lights of a portal flashed a little farther down the road in front of Breakdown.

_Odd, _he thought, _someone activated the bridge before I could even request it?_ Then it dawned on him; that was not his bridge portal! And there were two figures coming out of it…

"Autobots!" Breakdown shouted, "I see you're asking for a smack-down today!"

"It's past your curfew, so go home to your mothership!" Arcee growled at him as she transformed into her vehicle mode. She was speeding straight at him, shooting bright blue laser bolts as Breakdown tried to return fire at her. But she quickly turned right off the road and jumped behind two large boulders near the bottom of the mountain range. Breakdown raced over to the boulders, but as soon as he reached them, he was promptly smashed front end first into the giant rocks. He backed up a little and tried to focus his blurred optics. Clearly he had forgotten about the second bot!

"Take that you creep!" Bulkhead snorted as he backed up and rammed Breakdown again into the boulders as hard as possible. Breakdown could feel his entire body frame being crunched up as Bulkhead pushed harder. He howled in pain as his windows cracked and shattered into the sandy desert. He could feel energon starting to leak out of him. He tried to back up as Bulkhead suddenly reversed, but Arcee popped up from behind the rocks, transformed into her robot mode in mid-air, and landed neatly on the left side of Breakdown. She proceeded to slash both of his left tires with her sharp arm slicers. Breakdown screamed again, but this time it was into the com link.

"Soundwave!" he gasped, "I need... a bridge… and …Knockout …" and then he fainted as Bulkhead smashed into him again for good measure.

"C'mon Bulk," Arcee said in disgust," you can stop the massacre now. Breakdown won't give us any more problems. We have to try to find what Starscream is looking for."

"Okay. I hope Breakdown is still here when I get back." Bulkhead said as he revved his engine a bit. "I wanna turn that guy into a trash can for Miko." He replied.

But their small victory was quickly overshadowed by the deafening roar of a powerful jet engine flying overhead. Starscream had heard Breakdown cry out into the com link, and so he flew down to investigate.

_I bet that buffoon decided to romp around in a cactus patch! _he thought.

But Starscream was quickly enraged by the sight of the two Autobots standing next to Breakdown's unconscious body. He pointed his nose straight down and dove right at them full speed, firing two missiles before pulling back up at the last few moments as the explosions shook the ground. Because she was in robot mode, Arcee had dodged one of the missiles with some fast acrobatics and watched it hit the side of the mountain ridge. She tried to return fire at Starscream but some rocks were falling too close to her from the mountain explosion. All she could do was cover her head.

But Bulkhead wasn't so lucky. He took a direct hit from Starscream's other missle. For a moment, there was nothing but a cloud of sand that swirled around the fiery explosion. Starscream gave a maniacal laugh and circled around to see what had happened. His fly by had swept away the dust cloud. But what Arcee saw made her stop shooting and go weak in the knees.

"NO!" Arcee whispered in horror.

Her blue optics surveyed the scene that lay before her. She was frozen by the sheer carnage of Bulkhead's twisted frame, and sickened by the smell of burning metal. There was no hood on him, his green paint had turned grey and was completely charred in most places. All of his windows had blown out, and there were fragments of glass everywhere. But the worst sight was the gaping hole that went all the way from his roof through the very middle of his body, exposing his circuitry. There was a pool of energon forming underneath his body from his severed internal parts that burst open. Flames were creeping out of his engine and across his doors as his body frame made a sickening shudder.

"Bulkhead..." she said softly.

Arcee sunk down into the hot sand. Her whole body was going into shock. Time seemed to stand still as she watched the flames roar higher out of Bulkhead's body. She didn't bother to look at the portal opening up near her. She paid no attention to Knock Out and two Vehicons coming out of it. Thankfully, Knock Out rushed over to Breakdown so fast he didn't even notice Arcee staring at the giant bonfire. She watched the last rays of sunlight fade away behind Bulkhead's flaming corpse as Knockout and the two Vehicons lifted Breakdown and carried him into the portal. It closed as soon as Knock Out went through.

_I'm so sorry you had to go this way big guy, _Arcee thought, _How am I going to tell the rest of team Prime? Worse, how am I going to tell Miko?! _

She was fighting back the tears harder than ever. The thought of anyone else mourning over Bulkhead was too much to handle. She buried her face into her hands and screamed in agony as the flames raged on.

"Why is it that every bot I care about gets killed by Cons?! I... I loved you Bulkhead. I never got the chance to tell you, but I wish I would have!"

She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't hear Starscream land just in front of the fire and change into his robot mode. His piercing red eyes bore into Arcee as he strolled right up to her and gently brushed his razor sharp fingers against the side of her face.

"It's a shame I had to offline another one of your boyfriends, Arcee." the seeker said with a twisted smile, "Bulkhead would've made a great punching bag for Megatron."

Arcee looked up through the space between her hands and face. Her grief quickly turned to anger at the sight of Starscream.

"You MONSTER!" she spat at him as she jolted upright and took a swing at his face.

But Starscream seemed unfazed and grabbed her by the wrists before she could hit him. He pulled her close up to his face.

"If you surrender yourself to me, I promise I won't ruin that pretty face of yours." he whispered darkly.

Arcee just growled and turned her back to him with the intention of flipping him over her shoulders- but she couldn't gain the proper leverage to pick him up. Starscream seized the opportunity and overpowered her. They both fell forward to the ground. She tried to wiggle out from underneath him, but he pulled out his favorite secret weapon- the null ray. He quickly stunned Arcee in her lower back and Starscream cuffed her as she gasped in pain. She couldn't believe what was happening as Starscream got up off her. He smirked triumphantly while dusting himself off.

"Soundwave," he called into his com link, "I need a bridge out of here. I will inform Megatron of what I discovered today, after I take care of some personal business." he gave a devious chuckle as the familiar green glow of a portal appeared. Starscream picked up Arcee in his arms since the null ray had temporarily paralyzed her. He wasn't about to drag her and possibly damage his prize.

"I hope you put up more of a fight once the null ray wears off. I like it when we play rough."

Arcee gave a slight moan from her shameful defeat. She knew once she boarded the Nemesis her chances of escaping were slim. She tilted her head to catch one last glimpse of the sky as the swirling green light engulfed her and Starscream.  
_

Megatron was pacing in his private quarters. He was now questioning the choices he had made earlier. He was starting to regret letting Starscream out of his sight for a whole day. He knew the scanners couldn't have that much energy left in them- so what was keeping him?

_Starscream knows how important this is to me- and to the entire Decepticon cause!_ he thought angrily, _What in the Pit is taking him so long to report?!_

Just then, a small ping echoed through his com link. It was Soundwave calling.

"Lord Megatron, Breakdown is in the medical bay being repaired from his fight, and Starscream has made a discovery." His cold monotone voice was actually a small comfort to Megatron. "He wishes to inform you of his progress and will do so after attending to a personal matter."**

Megatron clenched his servos at the last part. "That arrogant little piece of slag! How dare he put himself before his mission!" he bellowed.

"Sir," Soundwave cut in, "I will retrieve the data from Starscream myself and deliver it to you immediately. My research depends upon his findings as well."

Megatron paused in mid rage. "Agreed." he said. "And take the data by force if necessary." He knew Soundwave was the only mech he could ever rely on to do anything right.

"Yes, Lord Megatron." Soundwave replied quickly.

Megatron relaxed his stance and walked over to the large window near his berth. He sighed heavily. He usually enjoyed letting his mind wander as he stared at the endless void of space. He always gazed out to the stars before a recharge. But the past few times he felt plagued by loneliness. He knew damn well what it was. He tried to bury the memory of her deep down so it wouldn't torture him as much. But now he could not longer ignore his desire to be re-united with the one and only femme who was everything he had ever wanted.

He wished he would have made her his Sparkmate when he had the chance back on Cybertron. Oh how his decisions always seemed to come back to haunt him!

_I am closer than ever to finding you, Nightbird. This time, you will rule by my side as we wipe out every Autobot in existence!_

**A/N: I am making Soundwave speak in his G1 voice, even though he has a TFPrime body. For me, I was able to flow the story better that way because there are a lot of scenes where he needs to speak/report, but if I get enough complaints I suppose he can take a vow of silence.

And now for those pairings: Megatron/Nightbird, BD/KO, Starscream/Arcee (in his sick mind anyway), Optimus/Elita One (together forever!), and a Miko/Jack/Sierra dilemma just for kicks. There is a possibility for Prowl to get romantically involved with someone, but I may end up making it an unrelated one-shot if I can't find space for it here.

Thanks for reading- PLEASE review!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers.

Summary: Megatron wants to resurrect a part of his past to destroy the future of the Autobots. But will his desires cause the end for both factions?

Rating: T for now- it may go up if I keep going further down the dark path...

_A/N: Sorry this one is short but I just wanted to keep the story moving along. I will be featuring the Autobots and humans in the next chapter._

Chapter 2:

Soundwave stormed down the corridors of the Nemesis with one objective. He would demand the data from Starscream- by force if he had to. He dodged and weaved through the various Insecticons patrolling the hallways. He was trying to get to Starscream's personal quarters at the other end of the ship as fast as possible, but that meant going past the med bay. Soundwave knew it would be chaotic, but there was no other alternative route…

In the med bay, Knock Out was on the verge of having a panic attack. He was used to Breakdown getting beat up, but this time it was much worse. He gazed at Breakdown sadly, biting his lower lip trying to hold back his concerns. There were several Vehicons scurrying about. Some were trying to hook Breakdown up to life support systems and others were bringing Knock Out the various parts that fell off Breakdown when they had dragged him down the hall. Unfortunately, Breakdown was still in his vehicle mode. Knock Out knew he couldn't pry open his partner into his robot mode without causing more damage, so he would just have to stay that way until he became conscious again.

_You just have to make it through this, Breakdown. You mean too damn much to me! _Knock Out thought as he double checked all the various life support readings.

Breakdown was alive, but barely. Knock Out had to determine how extensive all the damage was. He studied the severity of his partner's misshapen frame. He knew he was a good medic, but Breakdown would definitely be out of commission for a while- and who knew if he'd ever be the same after all the repairs?

Knock Out couldn't contain his high emotions anymore. He flung his arms across Breakdown's hood and gave him a hug.

"I promise I will restore you to your handsome self, and then I will make those Autobots pay for what they did to you!" His slick, smooth voice shook with anger at the last part. A small tear of fluid leaked out of his optic.

The Vehicons stopped what they were doing and stared at the tender moment. Knock Out realized how quiet they were. He stood up quickly and snapped back into his usual bossy self. He didn't want the Vehicons seeing him like this!

"Don't just stand there!" he shouted. "I have a serious operation to perform, and you'd all better be sorting out those parts like I asked or I will beat the living spark out of all of you!"

All of the Vehicons rushed back to their various duties. "You there!" Knock Out snapped at the random Vehicon who had just entered the room, "Those parts look filthy! I cannot even touch them let alone put them back inside my patient! Go wash them off immediately!"

"Yes sir." The Vehicon replied as he turned around toward the doors.

Poor Soundwave was almost past the med bay doors when they swung wide open. He tucked in his arms and did a 360 to swiftly avoid the collision with the Vehicon! But the startled Vehicon was not as graceful, and he spilled Breakdown's parts all over the floor as he stumbled.

"Aw, mother slagging hell…" The Vehicon grumbled as he stooped down to pick up the pieces. Normally, Soundwave would have stopped to help clean the mess, but he wasn't about to have Megatron upset by making him wait any longer than what was necessary.

_Starscream is being illogical again. Why didn't he follow Megatron's orders and report directly to him?_ Soundwave thought as he turned down a darkened corridor.

Starscream's personal quarters were not near anyone else's. Ever since Starscream came back to the Decepticons after his brief exile, Megatron saw to it that Starscream should always be on the opposite side of the ship while he recharged- so Starscream wouldn't be tempted to assassinate Megatron so easily. For this reason, Megatron also increased hallway security around himself while he rested.

But the quarters that Starscream now called home were in a more forgotten part of the ship. After exiting from the maintenance lift at the beginning of this level, Soundwave turned left past a lab that he was forced to share with Starscream. After that turn, the halls grew dimmer and dimmer. The floors were dirty, and the walls were dented and scratched up badly. Soundwave guessed that Starscream must have taken out his anger on the ship whenever he had a bad day.

Other than Soundwave coming down to use the lab by the clean, well-lit maintenance lift, no one dared to go anywhere near Starscream's room- especially the little maintenance bots. Starscream used them for target practice one morning for being too noisy as they tried to clean the walls next to his door.

Finally, Soundwave arrived at the end of the grimy hallway, and reached down to open Starscream's door. It was locked. Soundwave was not surprised, but he was annoyed at the inconvenience. He banged on the door loudly three times. He could hear the familiar growl of an irritated Starscream from behind the door, although it sounded as though it came from further back in his quarters. He heard Starscream stomp across the room, and mutter something as he opened an extra lock on the other side of the door.

_Why does Starscream feel the need for additional security measures? _ Soundwave thought as the door slid open. Starscream stepped forward and came face to face with Soundwave. His servos were clenched into fists and his optics shone a furious shade of red.

"What are you doing here?" Starscream demanded as his optics narrowed at his fellow officer.

"I have come to collect the data from your mountain explorations today." Soundwave replied in his usual monotone.

Starscream frowned, "But those were _my_ findings, I want Megatron to give _me_ the credit for discovering them! And I was going to tell him all about the tragic death of Bulkhead, I even took a photo of his demise-"

"I will inform Lord Megatron he is to give you credit for all your efforts. But he demands the results of your mission immediately." Soundwave retorted.

Starscream hesitated. He knew Megatron would be in a foul mood with him at this point for taking so long to report. Maybe he could convince Soundwave to take the scanner to him! But he had to think of something fast so he could get back to his new roommate before Soundwave could detect her presence.

"Well, Soundwave, I was going to go to, um, the med bay to, uh, patch up my injuries first. But if Megatron wants me to leak to death during my presentation I suppose it's only fair for making him wait _so long_…" he trailed off dramatically with a pained look on his face while he gripped his side. Soundwave tilted his head slightly, and Starscream knew he could trick him with some simple over-acting. Soundwave observed everything literally, and Starscream always found it fun to lie straight to his face- knowing he could get away with it.

"I don't think I am well enough to report to Megatron. I'm weakened from my huge battle with Bulkhead. Oh Soundwave, can you do the honors and deliver this to Lord Megatron?" he asked as he pointed to the scanner he had removed from his body. It was on the ground next to the door.

"Affirmative." Soundwave replied. His tentacles extended to the floor to pick up the device. "Do you require assistance to the medical bay?" he asked.

"NO!" Starscream said quickly, "Er, no thanks. I can manage on my own."

And with that, Soundwave turned and dashed down the gritty hallway. Starscream closed the door and listened to make sure Soundwave boarded the maintenance lift. When he heard it clatter away, he gave a crooked grin as he clamped the extra lock back on the door.

He turned and strode through his living space and into the back room where his berth was. He propped his back against the door frame and crossed his arms as he stared victoriously down at his Autobot captive. He blocked the light from the other room, and became a shadow with fire for eyes. When Arcee looked at him, she had to admit she was slightly scared by his unusual coolness at the situation.

"Well my dear, it looks as if I will be spending more time with you tonight than I originally anticipated." He trailed off as his crimson optics looked up and down her body frame with the most devilish smile.

Although the null ray had her main parts numb, she could still move her head, and she could move her wrists and digits. She knew could speak, but she didn't want to give Starscream the satisfaction of hearing her say anything. She tried moving her legs, but the way he watched her while trying to regain her strength made her highly uncomfortable and extremely embarrassed. She heard him step closer to the berth as she turned her head in the other direction.

"It's been an eternity since I've had a femme in my quarters, especially one as stunning as you." Starscream said as he grabbed Arcee by the chin and turned her head back toward him. Arcee gave a scowl at his flirtations.

"Oh how you have tormented my thoughts! Ever since the incident in Shockwave's lab on Cybertron, I realized how opposites like us are attracted to each other." And with that, he pulled Arcee up by the stasis cuffs to a standing position facing him. He placed her stasis cuffs up and over his head, and let her bound hands fall behind his neck. Then he put his both his servos on the back of her thighs and swiftly pulled her lower half onto his hips. He squeezed her legs hard around his body and Arcee uttered out a surprised gasp at how rough he was with her.

"You stand for everything I despise- I should rip your spark out right now. And yet, I want every inch of you in my arms..." He said in a darker tone of voice as he leaned his face forward into Arcee's lips.

"Ah, Soundwave! Megatron smiled slightly as he opened the door to his private quarters. "I take it you had to give Starscream a thrashing to obtain the information?"

"No, Lord Megatron. Starscream wanted to inform you that he killed the Autobot Bulkhead after Breakdown was attacked, but he had to seek medical attention because of the battle. That is why I am here."

Megatron blinked. He was caught off-guard by the thought that Starscream didn't completely screw up the mission, and that he had a valid reason for not being here. Still, Megatron had his suspicions.

"Are you certain the Autobot is dead?"

Soundwave turned on the device and plugged a tentacle into it. He brought up the last picture the scanner took. It was an ariel view of Bulkhead's mangled, burning body with Arcee witnessing it.

Megatron grinned. "Finally!" Megatron said, "We have the upper hand on Prime's team! With him gone, they will definitely feel vulnerable now. The sooner we find Nightbird, the sooner we can strike another blow to the Autobots!" he roared. "Now, tell me Soundwave, what did Starscream find out there?"

"Lord Megatron, here is the data that Starscream collected." He displayed the information as coordinates across his face-screen.

Megatron studied the data, "Yes, that would have seemed like an ideal battleground to her." he said. "But did Starscream scan for what was _under_ the rocks?"

Soundwave moved on to the pictures that Starscream's scanner took. He paused on each one, waiting for Megatron to confirm whether or not the mission was a success. After three pictures, he had found what he was looking for.

"I knew it!" he said under his breath. "These pictures confirm it! I will have our best mining drones out there in a few moments. Is this area near any current human cities?" he asked.

"No." Soundwave answered.

"Perfect. We can use explosives if we have to without drawing attention to ourselves." Megatron said.

"Soundwave, since Starscream is currently getting worked on, you will be in charge while I gather my mining crew and begin the excavation."

"Yes, Lord Megatron." Soundwave said with a slight bow as his leader hastily exited out the door.

It may have been the middle of the night, but the fire was still smoldering at the bottom of the mountain range where Bulkhead lay deceased. The remnants of the battle were already being dusted with desert sand as the wind howled across the desert. Megatron thundered across the starry sky in his jet mode, and then landed directly on the plateau where Starscream was just a short while ago. He transformed into his robot mode and bent down on one knee, touching the ground with the palm of his servo.

_I can feel your presence closer to me now more than ever before. This time I know you are here, and I will find you, my love…_ he thought to himself as the mining crew arrived by portal. A large drill machine popped out of the portal and drove to the very middle of the plateau. Other drones were carrying out explosive devices and placing them on the ground.

"You may be the best miners here, but I expect this job to be finished by sunrise. Therefore, I will be directly supervising this task. Anyone who quits before the project is completed will be terminated by me personally. Now, proceed." Megatron said sternly as he picked up a pack of explosives and began to fiddle with the wires and timer just to pass the time.

Deep inside the rocky mountain depths was a large cavern full of shiny energon crystals. In the center of a sea of crystals was a smooth slab of stone, with a large mechanical femme laid out on it. She had a powerful looking build in a lovely shade of chrome. She had black plating covering her more prominent feminine features, as well as black arm guards, and leg coverings that had small curved spikes at the tops of them. She had a triangular shaped face, with dark purple painted lips. The upper part of the Decepticon symbol was etched in black all around her eyes up to her helmet like fierce face paint, as though she was the living embodiment of the faction itself.

On her head, she had an elegant dark purple helmet that cut off with a small flip at the top of her black, choker-style neckpiece in back. But the front part of her helmet gave the true sign of a warrior queen. Toward the top, it had an intricate triple-spiked chrome tiara that held a purple crystal in the shape of a diamond.

It suddenly gave a small glowing pulse that radiated across her. The curved front sides of her helmet that came down a little past her shoulders glimmered in the quick flash of purple light. The crystal pulsed again, and tiny bits of rock started to fall like snow onto her motionless body as a loud humming sound was growing closer and closer.

_I am here for you Nightbird… _a familiar voice echoed into her dormant processor.

The crystal pulsed even brighter this time, and the loosened energon crystals in the ceiling began to come down like hail stones. The humming sound was directly above the femme in the cavern. There was a thunderous crack that resounded loudly throughout the whole cave. The ceiling that was now split open, and more rocks and energon kept raining down. Silvery rays of moonlight streamed in and shone inside the cavern. The crystals helped illuminate the cave even more by reflecting the moonbeams all over the walls and what was left of the ceiling.

All was still and quiet as Megatron transformed and flew down the dark tunnel into the mysterious cavern. He refused to let anyone else go down with him. He desperately wanted to find the one life form he ever cared about tonight, and he didn't want his blissful reunion with her to be ruined by his minions.

He reached the end of the tunnel part, and changed back into his robotic form as he landed right next to Nightbird. He gazed at her peaceful looking frame laying there amongst the crystals. At first, he was taken aback at how she still looked exactly the same after all this time. He sat down beside her on the rock slab. He bent over her lifeless form and touched her face with a tender softness. He leaned in and kissed her gently. The crystal on her crown shone brightly as her systems kicked back on. Megatron quickly grabbed her arms as she focused her golden colored optics onto him.

"Hello Nightbird." He said as she slowly turned toward him.

"Megatron?" she asked incredulously as she sat up. Her mouth had fallen slightly open as she looked at his battle-worn face. But she didn't get the chance to ask any questions. Megatron had pulled her frame to his and kissed her again, but this time he savored the sweet embrace as he held her tighter. A small moan of happiness escaped from Nightbird as Megatron pushed up against her lips harder.

He broke away from her for a moment to look at her beauty. How he had missed the sparkle in her optics, and the curves of her body! She let out a heavy sigh as she reached up to touch his scarred face.

"What has happened to your face, my lord?" she asked sadly.

"The war with the Autobots has taken its toll on me." He said as he loosened his grip on her body. "You will find that things are very different since you and your army left Cybertron to help me conquer unknown new worlds for our cause."

"How long have I been slumbering?" she asked, "The last thing I remember was climbing to the top of a mountain for a showdown with Prowl, and then the ground caved in after a few moments of the battle." her optics widened when she remembered the look of horror on his face as she plummeted down into the darkness.

Megatron saw her give a small shudder, and he placed his servo on the back of her neck and said "You must understand that I never stopped looking for you. And now that you are in my arms, I will never lose you again like that."

She snapped out of her semi-shocked state and traced over the Decepticon symbol on his chest. "I swear to you my love; I will avenge our cause and destroy the evil ones who kept us apart."

He smiled at the thought of himself and Nightbird storming the Autobot base and slaughtering them all into flaming shards of scrap

Megatron stood and scooped up Nightbird off the stone slab into his arms. He kissed her like mad; touching his symbol like that always got him going! He couldn't wait to take her back to the Nemesis for some more alone time.

_Author Notes: She's awake! mwhahaha… Autbots beware!_

_She will transform, but I'm still trying to work out an appropriate vehicle mode that is very feminine but also compliments Megatron's look._

_Thanks to the brave souls who are following my story. I appreciate your support more than anything. I will try to update as soon as possible because the poor Autobots have no idea what's going on! They are overdue for an appearance._

_Please review- I really hope this story is making sense to you readers!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Transformers.

**Summary**: Megatron wants to resurrect a part of his past to destroy the future of the Autobots. But will his desires cause the end for both factions?

**Rating**: T for this chapter- I seriously may have to change it. No one has objected to the death/violence, but it will get worse- fair warning.

* * *

_A/N: And here's what the Autobots and company were doing all the while ch1 and 2 were happening! _

_I realize there's a LOT of _G1_ human character references in this chapter-_

_I am not comfy making up OC's for humans, so most of the humans that have names/dialogue are people from various _G1_episodes._ _I tweaked their backstories a bit, so I hope it works for all of you the way it works in my head! _

_If you don't know _G1_ or want original _G1 _character info, go to Wikipedia and key in Transformers characters in the search area and scroll down to the "Humans" category on the chart. Maybe that will help you understand my choices- or make you mad depending on your tolerance level to me changing the characters XD_

_Yes, this is a long chapter, but it was overdue so… ;) ENJOY!_

* * *

Chapter 3:

The sun was just starting to shine above the Autobot base as Ratchet was the first to wake up from recharge. He headed straight for his workstation by the groundbridge. He enjoyed it too- the peace and quiet always helped him get his work done faster. He was trying to repair odds and ends of things so he could have free time for experiments later on.

Optimus woke up second and came out of his chamber stretching his limbs; and then he stared off into the distance as though he had a bad dream. Ratchet noticed how quiet Optimus was and knew something was wrong. He set down his tools and walked closer to where Optimus was standing.

"Optimus, is something troubling you?" Ratchet asked.

Optimus looked at his old friend and said with a sigh, "Even though I consider all of you here at the Autobot base my family, there are times I miss Elita One. I am concerned that I have not heard from her for quite some time. There are times I fear that the worst has happened..."

"But Optimus," Ratchet cut in, "you know one day the two of you will be reunited. She _chose_ to lead the other survivors to safe havens beyond Cybertron. She knew what she was getting herself into when she took up the Autobot cause, especially before she received her upgrades from Alpha Trion. I believe she's still alive and kicking Decepticon chassis. We _all_ have to believe."

Optimus gave his old friend a small smile, but Ratchet could see an ocean of sadness filled his optics.

Ratchet sighed. "I'm sure Elita misses you too."

Their conversation was cut short by an incoming call. It was Agent Fowler, and he was in a tizzy over something. Optimus greeted him in his usual calm fashion.

"Team Prime must be slacking lately!" Fowler called out, "Yesterday our favorite faceless 'Con stole two top secret machines from a world-famous research facility. That tech was meant for our soldiers overseas. The security footage shows him busting in through the window of the lab when the three scientists left for a coffee break!" he shouted.

"Soundwave must have been spying on them all day waiting for the opportune moment to smash and grab." chimed in Arcee, who was now fully charged and ready for a fight. Optimus continued to listen.

"Thankfully no one was hurt, but the security guard reviewing the video footage immediately called 911 before he fainted." Fowler said rolling his eyes, "Soundwave was long gone by the time local law enforcement came. They just dismissed the giant robot story as a hoax, and told the scientists to go home until further investigations were completed. How come you all didn't pick up Soundwave's signal when he came down to Earth?" he asked.

"That is a fair question, Agent Fowler, but Soundwave is currently the hardest Decepticon to track down. He knows far more than we do about measures of stealth." Optimus frowned as he said this. He didn't want his team to feel inferior by comparison, but sneakiness was a core part of the Decepticon belief system- and Soundwave lived every mantra Megatron preached to the fullest.

Bulkhead and Smokescreen came up behind Optimus to find out what Fowler was shouting about.

"Well," Fowler paused, "The facility will still be closed for today, so I have requested that Team Prime is to accompany me to inspect the crime scene. I'm sending you the coordinates right now. You need to find out what the scientists were working on in Room 226, and find a way to get it out of Megatron's clutches! I'm going to go pick up my tech support guy and meet you there." And with that, Fowler hung up.

"Well he was a ray of sunshine today." Smokescreen quipped. Bulkhead gave a guffaw and shook his head at Fowler's bad attitude.

Optimus turned to his fellow Autobots, "Whatever was stolen is clearly an important priority to Megatron if he sent Soundwave to personally retrieve it. They are probably using it to further one of Megatron's twisted schemes for global domination. "

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's find that sneaky turkey Soundwave and shoot him down!" Smokescreen said excitedly as he hopped into the air with a fist pump.

Ratchet rolled his optics as he turned on the groundbridge.

Optimus put a firm hand onto Smokescreen's shoulder and said, "Smokescreen, this is a crime scene investigation and must be handled seriously. Ratchet and I will go to see what we can find out."

Smokescreen's face fell into a frown as he said, "Oh, okay Optimus. I… I just want to get those cowardly Cons back _so_ badly!" he said with a hint of anger in his voice.

"I know Smokescreen," Optimus said, "I understand how you feel- we _all_ do. But I have another assignment for you today if you want it."

"Sure Optimus, anything- what is it?" Smokescreen optics perked up.

"Please go wake up Bumblebee and inform him you will assist him on a scouting mission for an energon mine. Find one currently not in use by the Decepticons. This is important, and your speed will help if anyone should spot you." Optimus replied.

"YES!" Smokescreen said loudly with a gaping smile. "I'm going to wake him right now sir!" he said as he darted down the hallway to Bumblebee's room.

Optimus turned toward Arcee and said, "Arcee, you will be in charge of the base until Ratchet and I return."

"Yes sir." She said, giving a nod.

And with that, Ratchet and Optimus both turned into their respective vehicle modes and drove into the groundbridge. Arcee closed the portal immediately after they went through it.

"Well, it looks like it's just us!" Miko said as she popped out from behind the groundbridge controls.

"Miko!" Bulkhead said happily as he stomped over and picked her up onto his shoulder.

"Let's jam big guy!" Miko said as she played an air guitar.

Arcee frowned. "I'm going to go listen in on some Con chatter to see if I can find out anything useful. Please go on the roof if you're going to make that awful noise you call music."

"Aw, okay." Bulkhead said. As he walked toward the elevator lift, Miko turned around and stuck out her tongue at Arcee as Bulkhead opened the lift door.

Arcee really didn't mind the metal music; she just didn't enjoy being the third wheel in Bulkhead and Miko's relationship. She wished Jack was there to keep her company, but recently he had his sights set on wooing his school crush Sierra- and Arcee felt the third wheel there too.

Ever since Cliff died, she felt so alone and started to grow bitter towards ever finding love again. But then she became friends with Bulkhead after working with him every day, and quickly realized how likeable he was. He may look like a big bad bruiser, but he had a gentle spirit- and Arcee enjoyed that contrast. While Cliff was confident but cocky, Bulkhead was clumsy but comforting.

_I wish I could tell him how I really feel without irritating Miko. It's not like I would ever ask him to choose between her and me! Besides, I am entitled to living happily ever after once we win this war, and that means finding somebot to share the rest of my days with. But then again, he would probably pick Miko for that too… _ Arcee was thinking of how to explain her feelings to Bulkhead as she switched on a radio Ratchet and Bulkhead made and quickly started decoding Con chatter. There were definitely two of them out there somewhere, and one was very unhappy. She instantly recognized the high pitched frequency that was bossing around the one that was very low.

She gritted her denta and whispered the name of her lover's murderer- "Starscream."

Oh how he got under her plating and drove her mad to the point of tears! _He has repeatedly gone out of his way to ruin my life; why can't he leave me alone?! Well, not anymore- I'm going to mess up his mission and kick the scrap outta that snarky, self-centered psychopath!_ Arcee thought as she settled onto a metal chair Ratchet had made, and she prepared to listen in on the Cons until Optimus and Ratchet came back.

* * *

Optimus and Ratchet arrived at the Carlton-Ritz Sumdac Research Facility in their vehicle modes. Thankfully it was in the middle of nowhere, due in part because of all the explosives testing that went on in the empty fields around it. The white brick building was faded, worn, and obviously old. The two Autobots knew the building was deserted, so they changed back into robot mode and walked toward the main door. Ratchet went in first with ease, but Optimus had to crouch down to fit inside the main door. Inside it was nothing but one long corridor going left, and one going right. A small office was right in front of them, with a sign above it stating the direction of Room numbers. They quickly found Room 226 and entered it cautiously.

"Ratchet, what do you suppose Soundwave stole?" he asked as he carefully stepped around the stainless steel main lab table in the middle of the room.

"Humph," Ratchet grumped, "probably some typical weapon of mass destruction." He said dismissively.

"Actually, it was a scanner." A small familiar voice said. Both Autobots whirled around- surprised to see Raf scrolling through a computer on a desk in the far corner of the room behind metal shelving units. Fowler was standing next to him with his arms crossed.

"It says here it was to be used to find life forms hiding deep underwater or buried underground inside caves. This thing can emit pulses of energy that radiate miles in any direction and instantly map it out in full detail." Raf said excitedly.

"What would the Decepticons need a fancy ultrasound machine for?" Fowler asked.

"There's much more to it than that," Raf said, "but the rest of the files have all kinds of firewall security protecting it. I just need a few minutes to hack in and get more info."

Optimus glanced at the broken window glass on the floor and tried to think about what purpose this scanner would serve to the Decepticons.

_Megatron, I don't know who or what you're looking for- but I will stop you no matter what it takes…_

A loud alarm rang out from the computer's speakers and a big yellow un-happy face popped up on the screen.

"Access denied?!" Raf said disappointedly. "But…but…" he sputtered to find an explanation as to why.

"Losing your touch?" Ratchet asked with a smile.

Fowler shot Ratchet a look and then put a hand on Raf's shoulder, "Hey kid, you gave it your best shot. There are some of the brightest minds in the world that are working in this facility. This stuff was so top secret, I'm sure they would have put elaborate booby traps everywhere if they had the time and resources."

"But somehow Soundwave found the time to research what this lab had in it and where it was. And he knew what time was best to come to retrieve it." Optimus said aloud. "Agent Fowler, can we obtain a list of the scientists who are working here on this project? I have strong reason to suspect one of them may be in contact with the Decepticons."

"Sure thing, Optimus." Fowler said. "Hey Raf, let's pay a visit to the HR office down the hall and see if we can dig up some dirt on the eggheads."

Raf was still flabbergasted by his epic hacker fail, but he got off the chair and followed Fowler silently down the hall. Thankfully it took next to no time at all to get to the office.

"And now it's time for some old-school detective work!" Fowler grinned as he opened the office door.

Raf looked around the small room filled with file cabinets up to the ceiling. "Where should I start?" he asked.

Fowler pointed to the small wooden desk against the wall by the door. It had a tiny potted cactus plant, a laptop, some paperwork, and a metal plaque on the wall above it that read "Administrative Assistant".

"Start poking around over there, and I will look for an employee file drawer over here." Fowler said.

Raf started looking through the short stack of sheets that were neatly placed on the desk. The top form read "Weekly Room Schedules". He lifted it and saw Room 220- with a list of names and work shifts. He quickly flipped more pages- Room 221, Room 222, and kept turning until he reached Room 226.

"Agent Fowler," Raf called out, "I think I just found our suspects' names!"

Fowler came over and viewed the list of names of Room 226:

Ms. Elise Presser, Mr. Chip Chase, Dr. Fujiyama, Dr. Arkeville.

"Perfect!" Fowler said, "I'm going to make a phone call to the local police department for addresses to find these people and interrogate them."

"Excuse me sir, but you won't get much help from the local PD." A male voice said. Fowler looked up at the doorway to see a young security guard standing there with one hand close to his taser, and the other resting on the door frame. He had jet black hair that was sleeked down into a ponytail. His navy blue uniform made his silver badge stand out, and his short sleeves revealed he had an athletic build. Fowler guessed he was in his mid-twenties.

"Who in the Sam Hill are you?" Fowler asked impatiently.

"I'm Raoul. I'm the security guard who witnessed the robbery yesterday. I'm leading my own investigation since the local cops think I'm all loco and making up stories about giant robots. You're from the government, aren't you?" he said as he pulled his hand away from his taser and walked into the room.

"Yes, I'm Special Agent William Fowler, and this is my- um, intern, Raf. We were sent here to investigate this incident. The robot you saw was very real. We need to find out everything we can about the item stolen, and what the scientists working on this item were like."

Raf, who was using the laptop to look for personal web pages of the scientists, chimed in "Anything you know about these people will help us a lot."

Raoul smiled. "Hey then, I'm your guy! I know most of the regular scientists that work here pretty well. That particular room has had some emotional ups and downs these past months, no thanks to that weirdo Dr. Arkeville."

Raoul took a step closer and sighed, "About three months ago, he went on a rampage storming up and down the halls slamming doors and throwing test tubes at the walls saying Dr. Fujiyama and he could no longer be lab partners and Dr. Fujiyama needed to be fired. That didn't go over very well with the big corporate owners of this place. So, he threatened the board of directors he would leave the project and take his half of the research and development elsewhere unless he received his own room, more funding, and an intern of his own.

Well, they didn't want to lose out on his renowned expertise, because they gave him what he wanted within a week. The tension was still there between him and Dr. Fujiyama, but his cheerful new lab assistant- Ms. Elise- seemed to keep his thoughts occupied on work. In fact, Dr. Arkeville changed his whole demeanor at work and apologized to Dr. Fujiyama, thus they became lab partners again. Things were quiet…

But last week, I was doing a basic sweep to make sure everyone was out before I locked up for the night, when I got to Room 226. Mind you, I thought no one else was left in the building, but I saw a dim light and I thought it was left on accidently. I was gonna go in to turn it off, but I heard Dr. Arkeville talking kinda hushed to somebody. The odd thing was, when I got closer to the half open door, he was speaking in a language I didn't recognize- it sounded like grinding metal and click clacks. I figured it was a foreign customer and I just did my usual knock on the door to let him know it was closing time and he shouted good night to me.

I didn't think anything of it, until four days ago I saw Ms. Elise crying outside in the parking lot in her car. I asked her what was wrong, and she said she couldn't tell me about it. Next thing I know, Chip Chase- Dr. Fujiyama's assistant- tells me yesterday morning he hasn't seen her or returned his phone calls for three days, but her car is still in the parking lot. I called the local PD to report her as a missing person, and they were like 'Oh well, young girls go missing all the time these days.' Poor Ms. Elise, she's the nicest gal in the world and doesn't deserve anything bad to happen to her… I'm convinced Dr. Arkeville's got something to do with all these terrible things!"

Fowler and Raf looked at each other. "Then will be the first one we interrogate." Fowler said, "Raoul, how would you feel about joining us for a visit to the good doctor?"

"Sure thing man." Raoul said. "But I don't think you have room for me in your helicopter outside. I don't own my own car- my sister always brings me and my mom picks me up."

"Raoul," Fowler said, patting him on the shoulder, "remember how you saw that giant robot steal the scanners? Well, he's a bad one. We work with the good ones trying to save our planet, and while they are very friendly to humans, they disguise themselves so they don't cause widespread panic. So, I'd like you to meet two of them if you follow me back to Room 226."

Raoul smiled. "I always knew that room was special."

* * *

The last wisps of pink clouds were rolling away above the Autobot base. Miko was lying flat on her back gazing at the twilight, waiting for the stars to appear. Earlier today Miko and Bulkhead had rocked out to heavy metal music, and then they snuck over to the annual demolition derby at the local dirt-track in Jasper. Arcee was so busy with her eavesdropping; she didn't even know they were gone for a few hours. And even though Bulkhead had to watch the whole derby in vehicle mode, Miko knew he loved every minute of it. On the way home, they went dune-hopping in the desert. This had been one of the best damn days ever and Miko had taken lots of pictures to forever remember it.

But for as loud and fast as she lived life, sometimes she secretly liked to just unwind at the end of the day with Bulkhead. He was the one who suggested they sleep outside under the stars tonight and tell ghost stories. He always seemed to know the thing to do or say that would make her happy.

_I can't wait for Bulk to get back and camp out tonight. Even though he has to come back with the bionic blue babysitter bot, at least Bulk and I will be up here having fun. _She thought to herself as she rolled out her trusty sleeping bag that she always kept at the base. It was so quiet, she had to stop and think about where everyone was at the moment:

Jack was at work, and Raf, Fowler, and all the other Bots were out on patrol or missions.

It was strange that Ratchet and Optimus had been gone since this morning- they left Arcee in charge of course, but their behavior was odd to say the least. Miko hadn't been paying too much attention to what their ominous discussion was all about, but she knew they could handle whatever trouble the Decepticons were causing.

Ugh, Arcee. Miko just couldn't understand what Jack saw in her. _She's a great fighter, but she's so… motherly. Poor Bulkhead is stuck with her, I wonder how long it's gonna take to smash those Con thugs and come back? I wish I could call them and find out…_

Her cell phone battery was dead from taking all those pictures- and she left her charger at her host parents' house. She didn't know how to use the com-link controls, and there was no Raf or Ratchet to ask for help. Hell, there was no one to ask anything at all! Bee and Smokescreen had gone off checking out an abandoned energon mine, and it was Arcee who heard Starscream and Breakdown's chatter on the one and only Decepticon com-link channel they could pick up. Arcee fired up the groundbridge and ordered Bulkhead to follow her into it when she realized how close they were getting to the Autobot base.

Arcee made sure Miko was left behind for safety reasons, but that wasn't how Miko saw it. Miko was currently banned from tagging along whenever Arcee and Bulkhead did missions together. Miko had recently suspected that Arcee must have a huge crush on Bulkhead and she was probably jealous whenever he spent time with Miko.

_This is Arcee's fault for cutting into my time with Bulk! She's the fool who wasted an entire day spying on the Cons- why couldn't she just take the freakin day off?! Why does she act like the Cons are always plotting the next apocalypse? I'm sure even big bad Megatron takes a day off every now and then just to relax!_

Miko grinned at that last thought: she imagined Megatron stretched out on a giant purple sofa taking a nap. She made a mental note to ask Bulkhead if he ever took days off from his job on Cybertron before the war. She stretched her arms and yawned. She took a seat on her sleeping bag and watched the stars begin to twinkle in the sky.

She would have dozed off too, but the roar of two familiar engines came echoing toward the base.

"Alright! Smokey and the Bee have returned!" she said as she scrambled off her sleeping bag and back down the elevator lift.

She reached the main floor as the two dirt-covered Bots rolled in. Bumblebee changed into robot mode first, and beeped excitedly at Miko.

Smokescreen quickly changed too and greeted Miko with a huge smile and good news. "We found an old Con mine that is definitely abandoned. It's a pretty far drive from here, but with a groundbridge it will be a piece of oil cake to pop in and out! Speaking of which, why didn't Arcee bridge us back? We've been trying to call you guys for hours now but no one answered!"

Miko frowned, "Oh, you can thank Arcee for that. She was dipping on Con calls all day and then randomly decided to take off with Bulkhead just a few moments ago when she heard her ex-boyfriend's murderer was nearby. "

Smokescreen's jaw dropped. "Arcee just left you here by yourself with no way to communicate to the rest of us?"

"Yep." Miko said in a flat voice.

Bumblebee bleeped and whistled something to Smokescreen in a worried tone.

"I agree- that doesn't sound like a typical Arcee decision either, but I'm sure she'll be back soon." Smokescreen said. But even he was worried by Arcee's rash decision.

* * *

_A/N: XO Well, that was an infuriating chapter to write! Autobot dialogue does not come easy for me. Aside from Optimus and Arcee, I have trouble making Autobots as serious as the Decepticons are. _

_So, please leave a review/question/concern/PM- I'm always glad to hear what people think._

_I greatly appreciate anybody who is still following this story! Thank you! :)_


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary:** Megatron wants to resurrect part of his past to destroy the future of the Autobots. But will his desires be the end for both factions?

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of these Transformer characters, Hasbro does. Also, I don't own any part of Ford/Mustang, Corvette, Cadillac, or Fiat. **

**Rating:T-** this means violence, laser firing chaos, robot romance fluff, humans in distress, mild gore, a gross discovery, death, implied sex, and mild cursing … you were warned!

_A/N: Holy Primus I need to clarify something: I am not good at all at making up OCs for humans- that's why I don't do it. If you do it in your own stories I encourage it wholeheartedly and I hope one day I can write as well as you do! So for now I have to stay within my comfort zone until I become a better writer. _

_Sorry if my previous chapter notes upset some out there- I only referenced the wiki G1 chart so people know how frustrated I am at not being able to make a cool OC :*(_

_Oddly enough, no one is complaining thus far about all the G1/Prime mash ups I have inserted into this story, so my dear brave readers I am going to roll with it! _

_*sigh* Now I just have to speed up the Bots side of the story first…I hope no one got confused how I told the story from the Cons view first and then the Bots'. I guess I should've made one ginormous chapter since most of this is happening all at once in one day, but that would have been one awkward chapter. _

_Enjoy this chapter at your own risk._

Chapter 4

The warm sun was shining down as Optimus was driving cautiously up a narrow mountain road. He wanted to reach the residence of Dr. Arkeville quickly, but he was leery about this seemingly mad scientist. Optimus was concerned there may be Decepticon spies lurking about when they arrived. Raoul had filled in Optimus about the series of events at the research facility, and it seemed to confirm Optimus' theory that a human had struck an alliance with a Decepticon. That left Optimus unsettled- he had put a lot of faith and trust into the humans on this planet and it always brought him down a bit when he encountered ones that were less than noble.

Still, Optimus knew that this planet did not deserve to be destroyed by the Decepticons, or anyone else.

_This is my homeworld now, _he thought, _and_ _the Autobots will fight for the freedom of all beings on it._ _I wish Elita was here with me- she always believed in our cause…_

"Just about twenty minutes more and you should be there. This place is totally deserted so you will be able to walk around freely up here." Raf said. He had redeemed his computer wizard status by hacking into the personal information files of the scientists back at the research facility. Raf and Agent Fowler were already at the rendezvous point, waiting for Optimus, Raoul, and Ratchet to arrive.

"Understood." Optimus replied as he kept on trucking. The following fifteen minutes of silence in Optimus' cab was too much for Raoul, who was quite a chatterbox.

"I think it's weird that Dr. Arkeville lives in an abandoned mining town." Raoul blurted out. "I mean, what could be up there that is so fascinating?"

Ratchet scoffed, "Oh please, he probably just lives up there because he's a cantankerous old hermit who only lives to work on his experiments."

"Yeah but he's probably got Ms. Elise held hostage in some dumpy old jail cell- and he's probably mistreating her and experimenting on her!" Raoul said with a hint of anger as he gritted his teeth.

"Oh that cur!" Ratchet agreed. "He gives all of us hard-working scientists a bad name!"

"You are jumping to conclusions too easily." Optimus calmly interjected as they finally arrived. "Both of you need to settle down, I need your eyes and optics to find clues."

"Whoa." Raoul gasped as they drove through a stone arch and into a town that time had forgot. There were about twenty wooden buildings that still stood in a half circle, with a small, plain church in the center. Some of the smaller structures were battered and beaten by sandstorms and others were covered in graffiti and obviously looted by vandals. The two-story saloon was the best looking building aside from the church. The windows were boarded up, but the swinging doors still flapped in the breeze. Their eerie squeaking echoed through the whole town. The last building on the far right of the town was the jail, with a hole in the side of the brick building as though it had been shot by a cannonball.

Just as he slowed down to park next to the little white church, Optimus felt a chill- as though they were all being watched.

"Everyone be on your guard, we may not be alone up here. We will stay together as a group. There is always safety in numbers." He said solemnly as Raoul got out of the driver's seat. Optimus quickly changed into his robot mode and drew his blasters ready, with Ratchet following suit. Fowler and Raf came out of their helicopter parked on the other side of the church, and Fowler drew his handgun.

"Well, what building should we go in first?" Raf asked as he walked toward where Optimus was standing. It was then that a purple laser blast sliced through the air and hit Fowler's helicopter. The blast rocked the helicopter so hard it shattered out the windows sending glass shards flying. Optimus quickly stepped in front of Raf and Fowler as they ducked behind his feet to shield themselves. A second blast rang out and this time hit the helicopter again, causing the machine to explode into a fireball as flaming parts rained down onto the church.

"Everyone seek shelter!" Optimus commanded to the three humans as they ran toward the saloon. Ratchet ran over stood back to back with Optimus, blasters drawn up, circling around a bit trying to determine where the enemy was.

"Show yourself!" Optimus ordered. A deep cackle boomed around them as the bells on the church tower gave small pings from debris hitting it.

"I don't think so." The gravelly voice said. "I'd rather do my dirty work from afar." And with that, several more shots rang out in Optimus and Ratchet's direction.

Raoul and Fowler were watching Optimus from behind the saloon doors with equally worried looks on their faces.

"C'mon Prime, cream that Con for blowing up my new helicopter!" Fowler said, shaking his fist in the air.

"I just hope Optimus isn't outnumbered, I mean who knows what's hiding around here?" Raoul said.

"Uh guys-" Raf said aloud facing the interior of the saloon.

"What?" Fowler asked as he and Raoul whipped around.

"Whoa… what is all this?" Raoul asked as he took a step closer inside the room. The inside of the saloon was dimly lit, and had only one table and chair by the window. The rest of the saloon was covered with wall to wall shelves that held gadgets and gizmos from the floor to the ceiling. Some of the larger machines on the floor looked more like mini mechanical monsters. There was an old red telephone booth in the left corner behind the bar that had tons of wires plugged into it, and there was a series of padlocks on it. A doorway with a dusty red curtain drawn to the side was next to it- a faint glow was coming from the room behind the bar. On top of the old wooden bar was a cluster of test tubes, glass vials, brewing pots, and a small flame of gas flickered underneath a purple liquid bubbling inside a glass cylinder. Behind the bar there were bottles of freakish animal specimens preserved in various yellow, green, and orange liquids stacked up where all the liquor bottles would have been. At the other end of the bar was a dark doorway with stairs leading up.

"This must be Dr. Arkeville's personal lab." Raf said. "I bet there are a lot of clues in here!"

"Well, I will watch the door and you start poking around in his work station." Fowler said.

"I bet that curtained doorway leads to an important room." Raf said. "I'll check it out."

"Well, then I'm going to see where that staircase leads." Raoul said as he drew out his taser and headed slowly up the creaky steps. Another round of shots rang out, this time from Optimus and Ratchet, and the saloon shuddered slightly from the blasts outside. Raoul shuffled up the stairs faster and entered into a small living room area with a busted up green couch under the window. There was a battered coffee table holding a brass candelabra of three half -melted candles and an old phonograph. There were books, magazines, and papers stacked everywhere on the floor around the coffee table. But Raoul was immediately drawn to the closed door straight ahead. He tried to bury his nervousness about who or what was behind that door.

He crept cautiously to the door and quickly grabbed the handle. "As easy as one, two, three!" he said as he flung the door open and stumbled inside a small bedroom.

A wretched smell hit him causing him to gag and cough as the dust and dirt settled from the door being forced open. As soon as he opened his eyes fully however, a grisly corpse tied to an old brown armchair was there to greet him. A large black and silver bird with bright red eyes was perched on the shoulder of the armchair and flapped his wings and cawed at the intrusion.

Raoul stood stunned for a moment before he approached the body. Sunlight from a broken window pane shone on the dead man. His half-eaten, once-handsome face had flies crawling on it, and the right side of his head had been bashed in, causing his rotting brains to ooze out of the gaping hole and stain the armchair. The flesh around the mouth had been stripped clean, exposing jawbones that had a fixed state of sheer terror as flies buzzed in and out of the gaping mouth. The large blackbird pulled the remaining chunk of flesh off the dead man's neck and quickly gobbled it up. It reminded Raoul of how a person would eat the skin off a piece of fried chicken.

The bird paused as Raoul watched him and it cawed again before flying back to his opened cage by the window and a messed up bed- it watched him intensely with those glowing red eyes. The man's bound hands were charred and burnt looking as though he had been tortured before his death. Raoul's gaze drifted down the blood stained armchair to the gaping hole in his midsection. His intestines had been pulled out and shredded into bits all over his legs. Raoul's eyes follwed the carnage to the grimy puddle of body fluids and bird droppings all over the floor. He saw some roaches scurry back under the chair before he finally looked away in disgust. He felt as though he was going to hurl, and as he doubled over to do so he saw something he didn't before.

It was then that Raoul noticed the man's tattered labcoat, and that his ID badge had not been destroyed. Raoul was afraid he already knew who the man was, but he needed proof. He stood up straight and reached out his shaking hand as he gathered up the courage to flip the badge over quickly.

"Dr. Arkeville." He whispered.

Optimus was trying to draw out his attacker, but the mystery shooter kept to the shadows instead of stepping out in front of the buildings.

"I have seen this type of attack before back on Cybertron, but I cannot recall who used it against us so well." Optimus said to Ratchet in between firing.

"Who fragging cares! I have better things to do with my time than make some sick Con happy with this twisted hide and seek game!" Ratchet said in his typical irritated manner as he dodged two more shots.

The firing suddenly stopped, and everything fell silent again. Not a moment later, they heard the roar of three engines coming straight at them- two Vehicons in front of someone that Optimus couldn't quite see. They sped right up to them and fired rapidly as they drove around them in a circle- creating a small dust cloud. In all the laser fire, a loud boom rang out. Ratchet was hit directly in the right shoulder and fell to his knees in agony. His shoulder had been blown open, and he was leaking energon badly. Optimus turned toward Ratchet and got down to help him get back on his feet. But as he did this, Optimus heard someone change into robot mode. Ratchet's optics went wide, and Optimus felt a mini cannon poke the back of his helmet.

"If I wasn't so loyal to Lord Megatron, I would shoot you here and now." The sniper said as he warmed up his weapon. "But I will have the honor of turning you in so Lord Megatron may have the glory of finishing you and this war. And don't even think about fighting back- I know you want the human girl so I'm rigged to explode if you try to take away my pretty little pet from inside me. I've become rather attached to my muse." He gave Optimus a small but painful electric shock as the two Vehicons came up and started to drag Ratchet away by his feet. Optimus finally realized who their attacker was. He was the lab assistant of Shockwave back on Cybertron- he was insane and intelligent at the same time.

"Makeshift, I will comply with your request only if you release your human captive." Optimus said as he fought the sting of the shock. He was horrified at this predicament, and did not want the maniacal Decepticon to harm the human hostage.

"Oh my lovely lab assistant is not going anywhere, and I'm not in the mood to barter, Prime. You're all coming with me whether you're conscious or not!" Makeshift hit Optimus hard in the back of the head for good measure and smiled viciously as Optimus went face first into the dirt.

As Optimus tried to get up slowly, he saw blue lasers hit one of the Vehicons directly through its midsection before it fell down with a thud. The other Vehicon dropped Ratchet's foot and fired back at the sky. A winged shadow flew over Optimus and swooped down low as more laser fire rang out from behind Makeshift. Makeshift turned toward the ambush, and Optimus saw his chance to move away. As he took a step forward, he glanced up to see who had saved Ratchet. He saw a blue Corvette Stingray with white racing stripes and gold rims. Both of his wings had the red Autobot symbol on them, and he was circling around in the sky gracefully as the remaining Vehicon kept firing at him. Optimus knew of only one flashy Autobot car with a paintjob that could fly like that.

"Tracks!" Optimus said, "How did you-"

But Optimus was cut off as Makeshift fired at him. He quickly sidestepped out of harm's way and fired back- hitting Makeshift in the foot. Optimus hoped Makeshift wouldn't randomly detonate his bomb in anger.

"Grrrraahhh!" Makeshift growled as he changed into his vehicle mode- a black two-door Mustang with silver racing stripes. Through the windshield, Optimus could see a red headed human female with glasses in the front passenger seat- she was all tied up with the seatbelt and gave a muffled scream. Makeshift sped away as Optimus came closer to grab him, but he didn't get very far before being sideswiped by a silver, gold, and black police motorbike.

"Pull over, Makeshift! This time, you're going to answer for all your crimes!" the motorbike said as he bashed into Makeshift again.

"Not today, Prowl!" he replied as he opened his wheel cover to expose a spiked drill that popped out. Makeshift laughed as he drove into the side of Prowl, causing sparks to fly. Makeshift swerved out and back into Prowl again, this time popping Prowl's tire with the drill. Prowl swerved to a stop and fell back as Makeshift drove under the stone arch. At that point, Agent Fowler and Raf came running out of the saloon with Raoul close behind them. Optimus followed him as fast as he could.

Makeshift was almost to the narrow road that went down the mountain when a hot pink Cadillac Escalade with silver flames on the sides pulled up and blocked him. He skidded to a stop, and Tracks hovered behind him with his blasters drawn.

"Release the hostage to us and I will let you go." The pink vehicle said as she changed into her true form. She had a mostly silver body with pink plating that made her look like she had on a corset and miniskirt. She had a round face with a short curved helmet that sparkled under the sunlight. Her bright blue optics shone fiercely at Makeshift. She stood with her servo extended out, waiting for the human girl to be placed in it.

"Elita One?!" Makeshift said with a snarl. "I thought Nightbird snuffed your spark a long time ago!"

"That story is irrelevant to this situation!" she huffed back at him, "I'm asking you to do the right thing by returning the girl and we will let you leave unharmed!"

Makeshift paused for a moment, then he revved his engine loudly and turned sharply straight off the mountain.

"NO!" Tracks said as he flew after him over the edge.

Makeshift was freefalling and laughing like crazy. His frightened passenger was not sharing the same enthusiasm- she was screaming again. "Don't worry my sweet," he said as he did a flip in the air, "we'll be having more fun as soon as we're on the Nemesis!" Suddenly, a green flash of light appeared before Makeshift and the space bridge portal closed the instant he passed through it.

"Dammit!" Tracks shouted as he pulled up from crashing into the ground.

Elita One gave a sigh as she watched Tracks fly back up to her. "Please go check on Prowl." And with that order, Tracks took off towards Prowl. Elita desperately needed to see Optimus. She could feel her spark beat as she ran under the stone arch towards her true love.

Optimus ran to her with his servos open, hoping to hold her again. He was relieved to see her alive and well. He didn't quite know what to say until she collided into his arms.

"Elita, I..." Optmus started to say but Elita put her arms around the back of his neck and pulled him forward for a gentle kiss. Optimus joyously picked her up by the waist to spin her around before he kissed her again.

"Optimus, I thought I would never see you again!" Elita said as she broke away from the kiss, but still held onto his strong arms. "I've been travelling across the galaxy hoping to find other Autobots, but all I have encountered is death along the way. I held out hopes for finding Autobots here."

"Where are the others that escaped Cybertron with you like Ironhide, Chromia, Huffer, Beachcomber, Seaspray, Blaster-" Optimus trailed off but he could see Elita's face dropped into despair as she told him:

"Two of my original party are dead. Ironhide came in contact with cosmic rust and Chromia chose to stay behind with him on a small moon colony, but I haven't heard from either one in awhile. Huffer was killed when our ship was boarded by space pirates whose captain was none other than Swindle. Beachcomber was ambushed while looking for energon by the Constructicons while we recharged on Mars. We never did find his body, but when we battled Devestator, they threw Beachcomber's tires at us and laughed. Seaspray and Blaster are alive and well back at our ship. Prowl was the one who suggested Earth be our next stop when we picked up some faint Con chatter coming from the Nemesis. We slipped by undetected, but we were caught in a raging storm and when we crashed we lost all communications for a day. We started to explore Earth and took on vehicle modes to look for energon- that's how we detected Makeshift up here. This place is sitting on an energon mine!"

Optimus looked stunned at all of this news, but Elita went on:

"Prowl and Blaster have been spying on Makeshift for three days now, and they recorded some of what he and the girl were doing, but I was apprehensive about attacking because of the human hostage. All of their evidence is back at my ship with Blaster, but Ratchet needs medical attention and sadly Blaster is not a good medic…"

Optimus cut her off and hugged her again. "I think it's best if we get back to our base and sort out what's going on. Hopefully we can determine what Makeshift was up to out here and find a way to stop him."

Elita One nodded and radioed to Tracks and Prowl to head down the mountain with Ratchet.

"And tell Blaster and Seaspray these coordinates so they can join with us at the base." Optimus said as he saw Prowl and Tracks drive past them with Ratchet in vehicle mode being towed behind them. Agent Fowler was riding on Prowl, while Tracks had Raoul and Raf. They were headed for the narrow road down the mountain. The sun was setting at this point, and Optimus was a bit worried about his other team members back at base.

"Hey Prime" Fowler shouted, "I think I found a replacement for that helicopter!"

Elita One gave a small giggle, "I guess we should go too." She blew Optimus a kiss as she transformed and rolled out down the road.

The stars twinkled above the base as Optimus, Tracks, Prowl, and Ratchet rolled into the main bay. Optimus changed so he could pick up Ratchet and place him on the operating table. Agent Fowler hopped off of Prowl and Raoul and Raf climbed out of Tracks so they could transform and assist Optimus. As they were hooking Ratchet up to a life support system, he gave a weak thumbs up to his friends.

"He needs some quiet rest to heal faster," Prowl said.

It was then that Smokescreen, Bumblebee, and Miko came charging into the room from the elevator lift.

"So much for the quiet around here." Fowler quipped.

"We were just about to sleep under the stars when we heard all of you come in." Smokescreen said, hoping to see Arcee and Bulkhead but instead he saw Optimus and two new bots fixing up Ratchet.

Bumblebee beeped a loud "Wha the Whaaaaaaa?"

"Whoa. Who's all the new peeps up in here? Miko asked as she gazed up at Tracks and Prowl.

Prowl stepped forward and bent down on one knee to see her better. "My name is Prowl and I am a …scout. I am pleased to meet so many new human faces in one day." He said rather solemnly.

Tracks also came forward and introduced himself, "Raf has told me all about you- I am thrilled to meet such a spirited young lady. I must say that the pink racing stripes on your head are simply fabulous!"

Miko gave a big smile as she ooohed about his wings, "A flying car for Team Prime- pure sweetness! I can't wait to see the looks on the Cons' faces when you zoom into battle!"

Optimus introduced Raoul to Miko, Smokescreen, and Bumblebee. He told them all about the day's events. Tracks was listening intently to Prime as Prowl continued to patch up Ratchet with Raf watching. Optimus was telling them about the research facility investigation and the battle with Makeshift when Elita One walked in with Blaster. Bumblebee got up and hugged Blaster like he was re-united with a long lost brother.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you Optimus, but Blaster would like to speak with you about what he thinks Makeshift was up to."

Optimus looked up at her and said, "Perhaps Blaster should compare his findings with Raf's back on your ship. I'm sure Bumblebee would like to spend time with his old scouting buddy."

"Uh, I'd better go as well." Raoul said. "I found something important to this mystery too."

"Oh my GAWD- there's MORE of you?!" Miko shouted, "I'm totally tagging along!" She was practically foaming at the mouth as she was hopping up and down at the thought of meeting more alien robots.

"Now wait a minute here, I need to be present at this meeting of the minds too." Fowler said.

"The hour is very late; I should remain by Ratchet's side while he recovers." Prowl said as he wheeled the operation table into Ratchet's personal quarters to help him get to his berth to recharge.

"Very well then team- Roll out!" Optimus said.

"I'm cool with that Prime." Blaster said in his smooth voice as he changed into a red Fiat 500 with yellow pinstripes.

"Seaspray parked our mothership behind the base. You humans hop into your rides and we'll all get the low-down on the low-life Decepticon behind this hot mess."

Raf climbed inside Bee, Tracks volunteered to take Miko and Raoul, and Smokescreen offered a ride to Fowler. The four cars peeled out of the base and a beautiful silence fell upon the two remaining souls in the base.

Elita One raised an optic at Optimus as she came up to him and held his servos. "Why did you-"

"This war has taken such a toll on our lives that we should enjoy every chance we get to spend time with each other." He said as he drew Elita closer and kissed her passionately as they stood on top of the Autobot symbol on the floor.

Makeshift pounded on Starscream's door. He hated coming down to his personal quarters, but he desperately needed to know how the scanners performed. Soundwave was too busy to discuss it, and Knock Out was too busy fussing over his beloved mech Breakdown. He called Makeshift an "insensitive aft" for wanting to know about how the scanners performed on their field test, and promptly shooed him out the med bay doors. So Makeshift pounded again on Starscream's door.

There was a thump, a scrape, and Makeshift thought he heard a moan. Then there was a shuffle of steps to the door. Makeshift could hear Starscream complaining about something as he opened some sort of lock and flung open the sliding door. He was breathing heavily, his ruby optics were narrowed into slits, and his servos were clenched into fists as he demanded,

"Why the fragging hell does everyone keep bothering me tonight?!"

"Whoa easy there Commander, I only want to know how the scanner performed today." Makeshift said as he gave a slight bow. Makeshift thought he heard a muffled sound coming from the other part of Starscream's room. He tried to look inside, but Starscream blocked him.

"They worked absolutely fine." He said hurriedly as he tried to shut the door, but Makeshift's foot was in the way-

"Aauuggh!" he said as the door hit it and shuddered as it opened back up. "That part of me is already effed up from Prime's blaster- and your damned door just made it worse!" he bellowed as Starscream rolled his optics. "Knock Out banned me from the med bay- c'mon old buddy, I know you've got to have something that will nix this pain!"

Starscream felt a twinge of pity for his old Science Academy comrade and let him enter.

"Fine, whatever- come on in, but keep it quick. I… I have company." Starscream said in a hushed voice as he peeked out in the hallway to make sure Makeshift was alone before closing the door.

Makeshift hobbled in and gave Starscream a chuckle. "I guess you could say I have company too." He opened up a secret panel in his midsection and pulled out a sleeping human female. Her dark red hair fell around her pale shoulders, and her thick black glasses reflected the crisp clear lights from Starscream's ceiling. Underneath a white labcoat, she was wearing a short, black strapless dress and was barefoot. Starscream cringed as Makeshift gently put her down on his chrome dining table. He took a seat on the metal swivel stool next to her and began inspecting his foot. Starscream brought him a syringe filled with painkillers from his private stash. He used these on the occasions when Megatron would pummel him for failures.

"So, I haven't seen you for what, three Earth months? Is she your 'lab assistant' or your 'pet'?" Starscream asked casually as he crossed his arms and blocked the door to his berth- glancing every now and then into the room. "I never could understand your fascination with non-Cybertronian females."

"A bit of both and then some," Makeshift said as he looked back at Elise while using the syringe on his foot. "She was assigned to me when I started working undercover as Dr. Arkeville at the research facility, and at first she drove me mad with her constant chatter. But then she kept coming up with all these great theories and inventions… I never thought that such a small creature would fascinate me the way she does."

"I still think it's strange how you managed to infiltrate human minds and reside in their bodies through those mind chips." Starscream said with a look of disgust on his face. "I personally shudder to think what their bodies feel like on the inside."

"Yeah it was kind of gross at first, but it was completely worth it." Makeshift retorted as he placed the empty syringe on the table. "Dr. Arkeville was taking too long with his original assignment on the mind control chips, and I couldn't exactly parade around the facility as myself. Plus, that Dr. Fujiyama was getting too nosy for my liking. I had to pretend I was on a rampage so he wouldn't want to work with me anymore, and I gave the doc a major makeover once I found out my assistant would be a female. Then I apologized to Dr. Fujiyama when I realized I needed access to his private research, and he unknowingly aided our cause. Ultimately, I made the right decision- look at all the resources I had access to once I took over Arkeville's body!"

"Yeah right," Starscream said sarcastically as he gave a sly smile, "This was just a giant excuse to get up close and gawk at a human female without getting screamed at."

"I did way more than observe! I used your cloning process as a model for my experiment to ensure I could feel exactly what doc's body did while I was controlling his mind. So many times I would hold her hand in mine and add another part of the scanner, or stand behind her and put my hands around her waist while I watched her work. Those touches were exhilarating and addictive. It was quite simple to win her over with typical things human females like such as flowers and poems. She didn't object to my advances so... like I said, it was well worth it." Makeshift said as he flashed a devilish grin and rudely gestured toward Elise.

"Oh holy Primus, you didn't- "Starscream said as his mouth fell open.

"I'd like to think that I was having an 'out of body experience'." Makeshift said to a speechless Starscream as he explained:

"About five days ago, I asked her to drive us up to the old mine one night for a romantic view of the sunset. I decided to tell her everything because I didn't want her to panic when she saw Soundwave stealing our 'mechanical babies'- that was what she called the scanners. Well, after I explained who I really was and the whole Decepticon shebang I took her into the lab in the saloon to prove how this mind control was all happening. Then I showed her my real body resting in stasis in the room behind the bar. She was shocked but fascinated by it all. So I seized the moment and kissed her like mad. She just swooned into my arms and I admit I took advantage of the situation. I had wanted to explore her body more anyway, and conveniently Arkeville had a bed upstairs."

Starscream was still speechless with his mouth hanging open as Makeshift continued:

"When I woke up, Elise was gone off to work. I was furious she left without telling me, and put my mind back into my own body. I had Buzzsaw tie up Dr. Arkeville and watch him as I went to the facility to retrieve wayward assistant. When I brought her back, Buzzsaw had roughed up Dr. Arkeville a bit too much so I just ordered Buzzsaw to put him out of his misery. Besides, Elise needed to see it happen to instill some fear into her. Clearly I was too careless with her, and could have jeopardized Lord Megatron's plans. But I refuse to be parted from her. She makes me feel things I never thought I could. That's why no one else knows she's here."

Starscream's face was frozen in utter shock as Makeshift looked back down at Elise with a mix of desire and agony. But a moan from the other room snapped Starscream out of his daze.

Makeshift looked up at him and asked, "Is that your 'company' calling for you? For how angry you were at the door, I figured I interrupted you doing something… devious."

Starscream sighed. "Well, I may as well come clean too. I am holding Arcee captive and no one here knows- except for you. "

Makeshift's optics grew wide and he snickered, "Congrats on finally catching your beloved little Autobot whore. So, how was she? Or are you the kind of guy who doesn't like to talk about interfacing. "

Starscream frowned. "No, I would love to brag about my exploits but I had just started having my fun with her when Soundwave interrupted me a little while ago before you did. That's why I was so angry at the door."

"Oh," Makeshift said, "how awkward. Um, well, in that case I will take my little sleeping beauty with me and give you some privacy." He winked at Starscream as he got up and put Elise gently back into his secret panel.

"But I swear if you tell ANYONE about Elise I will knock down your damn door and beat your aft!"

Starscream crossed his arms and said, "And if you utter a word about Arcee to anyone I will rip out your voicebox while you recharge in your berth."

"Thanks, you're a real pal." Makeshift said as he limped out of the door.

Starscream smirked and was just itching to go back to spending time with his "company". He walked in to Arcee right where he had left her on the berth and was about to climb onto her when Soundwave pinged on his comm link.

"Starscream, Megatron has completed the first stage of his plans. He is returning to the Nemesis with Nightbird. You are to report up here immediately to receive further assignments." And then Soundwave hung up.

Starscream turned and stomped on the ground, flailed his arms up and shouted "Mother frakking hell! I finally get the femme of my dreams into my berth, and I can't find any time to bang her?! I swear to Primus- I must be cursed!"

Arcee gave a small laugh as Starscream left her. She knew she got lucky today- Starscream could have already had his way with her. But every time he was interrupted, it took him awhile to get back into the "mood" again. Arcee suspected it was because he had been so lonely for so long.

_I've been lonely for so long too._ Arcee thought as she regained feeling in her arms again. She reached up to her lips that Starscream had kissed so hard he left them sore. He had also managed to touch her everywhere too while he had made out with her- she could feel a couple of scratch marks on her lower back. She had to admit that she was stunned by some of the racy things he said to her while she laid there in his clutches. It reminded her of how Cliffjumper would talk dirty to her before they made love.

Arcee sat upright and tried to walk around. She was a little wobbly, but the null ray was wearing off. Even though she still had those cuffs on her, she was hell bent on having revenge when he came back

_Well Starscream, _Arcee thought as she took a couple of leg stretches, _you said you wanted to play rough with me- so let's see how you can handle me when I've got the element of surprise!_

She glanced around the room before settling on the perfect hiding place…

_A/N: I just wanted to get this chapter outta the way so I can write Megatron/Nightbird for awhile._

_The Prowl I am using is from TFAnimated. It will make more sense later on why it's that version of him. Also, I will be giving Prowl his chance at romance in this story later on because I am dropping the Miko/Jack/Sierra love triangle. I think you will be satisfied when you see why._

_Thank you to everyone who is still on board this crazy train! I greatly appreciate your support!_


End file.
